It started with a bailed babysitter.

At my daughter's two month check up, the pediatrician gave mom and dad an assignment: date night. Being in SF, naturally there was a new restaurant opening in our neighborhood that I really wanted to try, so I scored reservations for opening night and secured a sitter.

As (bad) luck would have it, our sitter got sick and and cancelled the day before. I still REALLY wanted to go out, so when the restaurant called to confirm our reservation I just blurted out "There will be two of us, and a baby. In a stroller." To my surprise the hostess simply said, "Great! See you tomorrow night."

We arrived a little early to find a packed house. We felt a little sheepish hanging out near the door with our stroller, but everyone just commented on how cute and quiet our baby was, or wanted to know how old she was. When we sat down one of the co-owners chatted with us about the joys of parenting as our babe drifted to sleep in her car seat. My date and I enjoyed a great dinner and discovered that with some planning, dining out with little ones is great.

Mama's Guide is all about passing that same support on to other parents who might be wondering if their plans are "baby friendly." We're doing the scouting so you can have some fun.

The art for Mamas Guide was created by San Francisco-based designer Abe Bingham

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